The Pilot & Feasibility Program is a key element in moving Tobacco Regulatory Science forward rapidly and efficiently at UNC-Chapel Hill. This Program is ideally suited to allow young investigators in particular to develop novel ideas and concepts prior to submitting for national funding. We anticipate that the pool of P&F applicants will predominantly be located on the UNC-CH campus. However, if warranted, we are prepared to consider P&F grant applications from our collaborators at Duke Medical School, NC State and other TCORS Centers that fit in with our theme of Impaired Innate Defense with Tobacco Exposure. We would note that we have had extensive experience with this type of program in the context of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Pilot & Feasibility Program which we have run over the past fifteen years. We developed an algorithm that we believe was successful in that endeavor which we would use for the TCORS P&F program. This will include the following: 1) An eariy (six months prior to submission date) and widely disseminated announcement (on the UNC Pulmonary Division, Cystic Fibrosis/Pulmonary Research and Treatment Center, COPD Center and Center for Environmental Medicine and Curriculum in Toxicology websites, e-mail networi<, and through oral disclosures at weekly meetings) of the availability of Pilot & Feasibility projects; 2) a pre-review of one to two page outlines of Pilot & Feasibility Projects with the Director and Co-Director ofthe TCORS P&F Program; 3) a review (including an NIH-type priority score) of the Pilot & Feasibility Programs by the Program Director, Co- Director, other Co-investigators and at least two members of the Advisory Committee who are experts in the area pertinent to the P&F and 4) the development of a database/tracking mechanism to follow in the outlying years the success of the P&F grant program in generating extramural funding. In the past, we have been particularty successful in the P&F Program in developing the science required for successful multi-investigator grant applications, including Program Projects. Further, this mechanism has been highly successful in generating successful KOS, K21, and ROI applications for junior faculty. Thus, we would plan to model the TCORS P&F Program award mechanism along similar lines.